Shah Muhammad Sulaiman
Encyclopedia
Sir Shah Muhammad Sulaiman (February 3, 1886 – March 12, 1941) (popularly known as Sir Shah Sulaiman or Sir Sulaiman) was the Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court
from March 16, 1932 to 30 September 1937 and was the first Indian and one of the youngest ever to hold this coveted position. He was born into a distinguished family of lawyers and scientists of Jaunpur district (Uttar Pradesh). One of his ancestors was Mulla Mahmud Jaunpuri
(d.1652), who was the foremost philosopher and physicist of Shah Jahan
's time, a debater of issues in Shiraz with Mir Damad
, and the author of a much valued commentary, Shams al-Bazigha. His father Muhammad Usman was leading member of the Jaunpur Bar. He had three brothers (Shah Mohammed Sifiyan, Shah Mohammed Salman, and Shah Mohammed Habib) and one sister (Shah Habib).
Sulaiman married Lady Fatima Sulaiman and had three sons and one daughter; Shah Mehmood Sulaiman, Shah Ahmed Sulaiman (husband of Begum Akhtar Sulaiman
and father of Shahida Jamil
, the first female Pakistan Federal Minister of Law), Shah Hamid Sulaiman and Salma Akhter.
He was buried at Nizamuddin Dargah
by the side of Amir Khusrow. Sir Shah Sulaiman Road, named after him, is a large road in Karachi that runs from the East wall of National Stadium, Karachi
up to Government College for Men Nazimabad
in 1906 and topped the list. He was awarded the Provincial Government Scholarship to study abroad. He joined Cambridge University and obtained Mathematical Tripos
in (1909) and Law Tripos
in 1910.
In 1909 he sat for the Indian Civil Service Examination and was not selected. He did not make a second attempt to appear in the Civil Service Examination and prepared to be called to the Bar. He was awarded LLD by the University of Dublin (Ireland) in 1910.
The Rani of Sherkort's case, the Bamrauli case, the Dharampur case and the Bhilwal case, were his early legal triumphs. He impressed the English Chief Justice of Allahabad High Court so much that he was offered a seat on the Bench at an early age of 34.
Sulaiman acted as Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court
when he was 43 and at the age of 46 he was made the permanent Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court on March 16, 1932. Five years later he was elevated to the Federal Court which was a record in the British Commonwealth at the time.
As Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court, he handed down the final judgement in the Meerut Conspiracy Case
at the appellate stage (S.H. Jhabwala And Ors. vs Emperor decided on 3 August 1933).
Sir Tej Bahadur Sapru said of him:
He was founder President of several educational institutions and members of the Courts and Executive Councils of Allahabad and Aligarh Muslim University for a number of years, as President of the United Councils of Allahabad and Aligarh Muslim University for a number of years. He became President of the United Provinces Educational Conference at Badaon in 1924.
In 1928 he presided over the All-India Muhammadan Educational Conference at Ajmer and in his address he advocated a revolutionary and progressive change in the educational system by stressing the practical, technical and vocational sides of education.
He delivered convocation addresses at the Universities of Dacca, Aligarh, Hyderabad and Agra. Sir Shah was elected Vice-Chancellor of the Aligarh Muslim University
where he introduced several beneficial reforms and laid down policies of far reaching importance, which extricated the University out of its financial and administrative crisis. He gave an impetus to education of women in the University and introduced Urdu as an independent subject in B.A. classes. He improved the finances of the University, helped execution of schemes concerning water works and the Technological Institutes. His dynamic leadership infused a healthy spirit of competition among the students in beneficial spheres of educational activity, which enabled the Aligarh Muslim University to compete successfully in the All-India Competitive Examinations in larger numbers. He made the University a centre of higher scientific research.
Sir Shah was also the President of the famous Anglo-Arabic College of Delhi for a number of years.
But, it is in the realm of mathematics and sciences that he made the biggest contribution. He carried out valuable mathematical research to correct certain misconceptions and miscalculations in Newton's Theory of Gravity and Einstein's Theory of Relativity
. His findings were supported by a number of outstanding scientists from all over the world and the later observation of phenomenon justified his initial conclusions. But, unfortunately he did not live to complete his research in the matter.
Allahabad High Court
The Allahabad High Court or the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad is a high court having jurisdiction over the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh since 1950...
from March 16, 1932 to 30 September 1937 and was the first Indian and one of the youngest ever to hold this coveted position. He was born into a distinguished family of lawyers and scientists of Jaunpur district (Uttar Pradesh). One of his ancestors was Mulla Mahmud Jaunpuri
Mulla Mahmud Jaunpuri
Mulla Mahmud Jaunpuri was an important Indian natural philosopher and astronomer of the 16th century. Book II of his classic Shams-e-Bazeghi is on theoretical astronomy, where he raises doubts about the Ptolemaic system...
(d.1652), who was the foremost philosopher and physicist of Shah Jahan
Shah Jahan
Shah Jahan Shah Jahan (also spelled Shah Jehan, Shahjehan, , Persian: شاه جهان) (January 5, 1592 – January 22, 1666) Shah Jahan (also spelled Shah Jehan, Shahjehan, , Persian: شاه جهان) (January 5, 1592 – January 22, 1666) (Full title: His Imperial Majesty Al-Sultan al-'Azam wal Khaqan...
's time, a debater of issues in Shiraz with Mir Damad
Mir Damad
Mir Damad , known also as Mir Mohammad Baqer Esterabadi, or Asterabadi, was an Iranian philosopher in the Neoplatonizing Islamic Peripatetic traditions of Avicenna and Suhrawardi, a scholar of the traditional Islamic sciences, and foremost figure , of the cultural renaissance of Iran undertaken...
, and the author of a much valued commentary, Shams al-Bazigha. His father Muhammad Usman was leading member of the Jaunpur Bar. He had three brothers (Shah Mohammed Sifiyan, Shah Mohammed Salman, and Shah Mohammed Habib) and one sister (Shah Habib).
Sulaiman married Lady Fatima Sulaiman and had three sons and one daughter; Shah Mehmood Sulaiman, Shah Ahmed Sulaiman (husband of Begum Akhtar Sulaiman
Begum Akhtar Sulaiman
Begum Akhtar Sulaiman was a Pakistani social worker, political activist and the daughter of Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy.-Family:...
and father of Shahida Jamil
Shahida Jamil
Shahida Nighat Jamil is a Pakistani lawyer and politician.-Education and Family:She was called to the Bar in 1973. Prior to that she graduated from Sindh Muslim Law College and holds a Bachelors of Arts degree in political science and English literature from Karachi University through St...
, the first female Pakistan Federal Minister of Law), Shah Hamid Sulaiman and Salma Akhter.
He was buried at Nizamuddin Dargah
Nizamuddin Dargah
Nizamuddin Dargah is the dargah of one of the world's most famous Sufi saints, Nizamuddin Auliya. Situated in the Nizamuddin West area of Delhi, the dargah is visited by thousands of Muslims every week, and sees a fair share of Hindus, Christians and people from other religions...
by the side of Amir Khusrow. Sir Shah Sulaiman Road, named after him, is a large road in Karachi that runs from the East wall of National Stadium, Karachi
National Stadium, Karachi
The National Stadium is a cricket stadium in Karachi, Pakistan. It is currently used for cricket matches, and is home to Karachi's domestic cricket teams. The stadium is able to hold 34,228 spectators, making it the second largest cricket stadium in Pakistan after Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore...
up to Government College for Men Nazimabad
Government College for Men Nazimabad
Government College for Men, Nazimabad is an all-male degree college located in Karachi, Pakistan adjacent to the flyover located in Nazimabad town.- History :...
Early life
Sulaiman graduated from Allahabad UniversityAllahabad University
Allahabad University , is a premier Central University located in Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, India. Its origins lie in the Muir Central College, named after Lt...
in 1906 and topped the list. He was awarded the Provincial Government Scholarship to study abroad. He joined Cambridge University and obtained Mathematical Tripos
Tripos
The University of Cambridge, England, divides the different kinds of honours bachelor's degree by Tripos , plural Triposes. The word has an obscure etymology, but may be traced to the three-legged stool candidates once used to sit on when taking oral examinations...
in (1909) and Law Tripos
Tripos
The University of Cambridge, England, divides the different kinds of honours bachelor's degree by Tripos , plural Triposes. The word has an obscure etymology, but may be traced to the three-legged stool candidates once used to sit on when taking oral examinations...
in 1910.
In 1909 he sat for the Indian Civil Service Examination and was not selected. He did not make a second attempt to appear in the Civil Service Examination and prepared to be called to the Bar. He was awarded LLD by the University of Dublin (Ireland) in 1910.
Legal career
Sulaiman returned to India in 1911 and started his legal practice as a junior to his father in Jaunpur. In 1912, he shifted to Allahabad to practice in the High Court.The Rani of Sherkort's case, the Bamrauli case, the Dharampur case and the Bhilwal case, were his early legal triumphs. He impressed the English Chief Justice of Allahabad High Court so much that he was offered a seat on the Bench at an early age of 34.
Sulaiman acted as Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court
Allahabad High Court
The Allahabad High Court or the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad is a high court having jurisdiction over the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh since 1950...
when he was 43 and at the age of 46 he was made the permanent Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court on March 16, 1932. Five years later he was elevated to the Federal Court which was a record in the British Commonwealth at the time.
As Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court, he handed down the final judgement in the Meerut Conspiracy Case
Meerut Conspiracy Case
Meerut Conspiracy Case was a controversial court case, in which several trade unionists, including three Englishmen were arrested for organizing Indian-rail strike, this immediately caught attention back home in England, inspired the 1932 play titled Meerut, by Manchester street theatre group, the...
at the appellate stage (S.H. Jhabwala And Ors. vs Emperor decided on 3 August 1933).
Sir Tej Bahadur Sapru said of him:
“Nature had endowed him with gifts of an extraordinary character. Possessed of a penetrative
intellect, a mind which could dissect and analyse things as very few other minds could, a power of
expression and exposition, he did not take much time on the Bench before he made everyone
feel that we had got a Judge of unusual ability and unusual gifts. . . He earned the respect of
everyone for his depth of learning, for his sweep of mind and for the promptness of his decisions."
Contribution to education
Sulaiman distinguished himself in diverse fields of human activity and different aspects of learning and was an outstanding educationist who took keen interest in the administration and advancement of several educational institutions, in which, he left distinctive marks.He was founder President of several educational institutions and members of the Courts and Executive Councils of Allahabad and Aligarh Muslim University for a number of years, as President of the United Councils of Allahabad and Aligarh Muslim University for a number of years. He became President of the United Provinces Educational Conference at Badaon in 1924.
In 1928 he presided over the All-India Muhammadan Educational Conference at Ajmer and in his address he advocated a revolutionary and progressive change in the educational system by stressing the practical, technical and vocational sides of education.
He delivered convocation addresses at the Universities of Dacca, Aligarh, Hyderabad and Agra. Sir Shah was elected Vice-Chancellor of the Aligarh Muslim University
Aligarh Muslim University
Aligarh Muslim University ,is a residential academic university, established in 1875 by Sir Syed Ahmed Khan as Mohammedan Angelo-Oriental College and later granted the status of Central University by an Act of the Indian Parliament in 1920...
where he introduced several beneficial reforms and laid down policies of far reaching importance, which extricated the University out of its financial and administrative crisis. He gave an impetus to education of women in the University and introduced Urdu as an independent subject in B.A. classes. He improved the finances of the University, helped execution of schemes concerning water works and the Technological Institutes. His dynamic leadership infused a healthy spirit of competition among the students in beneficial spheres of educational activity, which enabled the Aligarh Muslim University to compete successfully in the All-India Competitive Examinations in larger numbers. He made the University a centre of higher scientific research.
Sir Shah was also the President of the famous Anglo-Arabic College of Delhi for a number of years.
Literary and Scientific contributions
Sulaiman had a keen sense for poetry and presided over a number of All-India poetical symposiums. He edited and wrote an enlightened introduction to the Alame-e-Khiyal, the immortal Masnavi of Shauq Qidwai.But, it is in the realm of mathematics and sciences that he made the biggest contribution. He carried out valuable mathematical research to correct certain misconceptions and miscalculations in Newton's Theory of Gravity and Einstein's Theory of Relativity
Theory of relativity
The theory of relativity, or simply relativity, encompasses two theories of Albert Einstein: special relativity and general relativity. However, the word relativity is sometimes used in reference to Galilean invariance....
. His findings were supported by a number of outstanding scientists from all over the world and the later observation of phenomenon justified his initial conclusions. But, unfortunately he did not live to complete his research in the matter.